The Mouse-house is having a lot of trouble these days and it may be finding that being too 'woke' is not always the best strategy, at least not from a financial sense.
It appears that Disney's latest 'big film', 'The Little Mermaid', which cost $360 million to produce and market is falling far short of box-office expectations and will likely lose between $30-60 million, when all is said and done.
Obviously there will be revenues from streaming and merchandising but the numbers are far-less than Disney counted on. But why?
The first, 'Little Mermaid', an animated musical fantasy (based on a fairy tale authored by Han Christian Andersen) was released in 1989. This new film, a live-action remake, received very bad reviews from both film critics and moviegoers as being a very poorly constructed movie.
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| One-sheet from the 1989 movie |
Additionally, there appears to be no demand within the international market (particularly in China) as the movie has grossed only $68 million globally to date. Word is, it does not follow the Andersen tale which has turned off many parents, as well as children as Disney decided to use a person of color to play the role of Ariel, a Dutch mermaid in the original story.
I get it that Disney wants to impart their diversity stance but unfortunately this woke view doesn't 'fit' into the moviegoer's mindset of what they (children for the most part) anticipated.
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| Not what was anticipated by moviegoers |
Disney believed that 'The Little Mermaid' would replicate what 'Beauty and the Beast' and 'Aladdin' banked - each grossing over $1 billion. But this was not to be.
Whatever the reasoning, this film was a no-show for moviegoers. Disney needs to have an intervention. It has major financial issues, recently laid off over 7,000 employees, and Bob Iger has no answers to the Mouse's problems.
By: Jim Lavorato, Entertainment Equipment Corp.
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